Rock Garden Resort redefines tranquillity:

A tribute to Anuradhapura's regal grandeur

Can you imagine the glorious days of the Kingdom of Anuradhapura. It was one of the most prosperous kingdoms in the ancient days of yore. You can get an idea of the grandeur of Anuradhapura if you visit the city and see the iconic Buddhist shrines and monuments. But if you wish to get a feeling of those legendary days gone by, in a unique and tranquil setting, there is a place within Anuradhapura itself, designed as a replica of the ancient Kingdom. It is one of a kind project, that offers luxury and privacy to the discerning traveller.

Welcome to the Forest Rock Garden Resort, located in the Andarawewa forest reserve in Anuradhapura. It is the island's first concept - boutique hotel which presents the cultural and architectural splendour of the glorious Anuradhapura era.

Its creator, B. Chandrasiri, a self-trained artist and an entrepreneur, says, he is truly humbled to have welcomed a large number of guests from around the world since the opening of his resort, nearly three years ago. "The response has been every encouraging; those who visit us appreciate the concept," says Chandrasiri.

A native of Anuradhapura, Chandrasiri entered the hotel trade with the setting up of Palm Garden Hotel, Anuradhapura, built two decades ago on his return to the country from Europe. "I invested quite a lot of money to build my first hotel, because while building it, I also created a jungle and a tank (wewa) to maintain the ecological system," he tells us at his office in the Palm Garden Hotel premises.

Chandrasiri says, it took one year and nine months to build his second hotel, Forest Rock Garden. "It was a huge operation. About 300 people worked at the site at any given time; a difficult task indeed, to get an army of people to work in unison. But, we were a team who shared equal responsibilities at the site," Chandrasiri says, recalling the days of intense labour. Each morning he assembled the co-workers and briefed them on the target for the day.

The total concept of the hotel was designed by Chandrasiri himself. "I did not hire architects or planners. I did my own designs, inspired by ancient architectural designs," he says.

Chandrasiri's primary concept was to create a 'value added' tourism project, which would be admired by travellers. So he chose a combination of 'a kingdom and a temple'.

"I decided to build the resort atop concrete pillars, to reduce damage to the environment."So, the guests today enjoy walking along the bridges to get to their rooms and other facilities. "It's indeed a unique experience , as though you are walking in the sky," he says. Chandrasiri says they cut only three trees during the construction; and to compensate it, he launched a 100,000 tree planting campaign.

The Forest Rock Garden Resort has 25 luxury rooms including six luxury suites with private swimming pools. The suites are spacious with luxury features and spaces such as mini gym, kitchen and a large sitting area.

Whether it's a luxury room or a suite, one is assured of complete privacy, and quietude, except for the sounds of the birds and the bees, wind and raindrops. All units have modern security systems including CCTV cameras.

If you take a walk along the four kilometer long bridge you will find 19 purposely-built 'Ambalamas' (resting places). They facilitate the visitors to relax in the serene environment with a refreshing cup of tea, perhaps. "Our in-house guests love this concept," says Chandrasiri.

Walking along the bridges, you would find various facilities, such as, the Ayurveda treatment centre, meditation centre, reading rooms, the main swimming pool and the restaurant. Whenever you wish to escape the ordinary, and elevate your consciousness, you could simply walk up to the highest point of the complex and reach the perfect ambience for meditation.

The resort is increasingly becoming popular as a film location. Film director Jayantha Chandrasiri used it to shoot his latest film 'Maharaja Dutugemunu' recently. Television stations too find it an interesting venue for their programs. The images depicted here explain it in a much better way.

The resort is essentially vegetarian, serving only authentic vegetarian cuisine. The chefs are quite innovative and offer a wide range of delicious and yummy vegetarian dishes, such as, devilled-Kohila, polos-fillet and kurakkan-soup.

(CJ)